Fair Work or the NSW IRC: which system covers you?

Two systems, one question.

Australia has a national workplace system under the Fair Work Act and a set of state systems, including the New South Wales system under the Industrial Relations Act. Most workers are in the national system, but a significant group in New South Wales are in the state system. Which one covers you depends mainly on the kind of employer you work for, and it determines everything that follows.

This is general information, not advice on your situation. Coverage can be finely balanced in some cases, and the consequences of getting it wrong, a claim lodged in the wrong forum or out of time, are serious. If you are unsure which system you are in, that is the first thing to check before you lodge anything.

What decides which system you are in?

The main dividing line is whether your employer is a trading or financial corporation. Employees of such corporations, which includes most Pty Ltd companies operating a business, are in the national Fair Work system, wherever they work in Australia. Employees whose employer is not a constitutional corporation, such as many sole traders and partnerships, along with state public sector and local government employees, fall into the state system.

So a worker at a private company is almost always national, while a worker at a NSW government department or a local council is almost always state. The awkward cases are unincorporated private employers, a sole trader or a partnership that is not a trading corporation, whose employees can be in the state system. Checking the exact legal identity of your employer is how you resolve the doubt.

Who is in the national Fair Work system?

The national system covers employees of constitutional corporations, which is most private sector employers that operate as companies, along with employees in the territories and some others brought in by referral. For these workers, the Fair Work Act sets minimum entitlements, modern awards and the National Employment Standards apply, and the Fair Work Commission is the tribunal that hears unfair dismissal, general protections, bullying and sexual harassment matters.

Because most private companies are trading corporations, the national system covers the majority of Australian employees. If you work for a company with Pty Ltd or Ltd in its name that runs a business, you are very likely in the national system, and your unfair dismissal or other claim goes to the Fair Work Commission, not the NSW IRC.

Who is in the NSW state system?

The New South Wales state system covers state public sector employees, local council employees, and employees of unincorporated state employers, together with workers covered by state awards. For these workers, the Industrial Relations Act applies, state awards set conditions, and the NSW Industrial Relations Commission is the tribunal, as our guide on what the IRC is explains.

This is a large and important group in New South Wales, given the size of the public sector and local government. A teacher, a council worker, or a state agency employee will usually be in the state system and deal with the IRC. Recent reforms have widened what the state system offers these workers, including new bullying and sexual harassment jurisdiction, which makes getting the coverage question right even more useful.

Why does it matter which system you are in?

It matters because the two systems have different laws, different tribunals, and different deadlines. An unfair dismissal claim in the national system goes to the Fair Work Commission under the Fair Work Act; the same claim in the state system goes to the NSW IRC under the Industrial Relations Act. The tests, the time limits, and the remedies are not identical, and a claim built for the wrong system can fail.

The deadline point is the sharpest. Unfair dismissal claims in both systems have short time limits, often around three weeks. If you spend part of that time preparing a claim for the wrong tribunal, you can miss the real deadline. That is why identifying your system correctly, at the very start, is not a technicality but the foundation of the whole claim.

How do you find out which system covers you?

Start with your employer's legal identity. Look at your payslip, contract, or the company register to see whether your employer is a company, a government body, a council, or an individual or partnership. A company running a business is almost certainly national; a government or council employer is almost certainly state; an unincorporated private employer may be state. That check answers the question in most cases.

Where it is genuinely unclear, get advice quickly rather than guessing, because the deadline is running. A short conversation to confirm your system, and therefore your tribunal and your time limit, is cheap insurance against lodging in the wrong place and losing the claim. Once you know your system, our guides on unfair dismissal and the application process explain the next steps.

Primary sources: the national system operates under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), and the New South Wales state system under the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW). The national tribunal is the Fair Work Commission. Decisions on the corporations coverage question are searchable on JADE.

Common questions

How do you know if you are in the Fair Work or NSW state system?

It depends mainly on your employer. Employees of trading or financial corporations, most private companies, are in the national Fair Work system. NSW public sector employees, local council workers, and employees of unincorporated state employers such as many sole traders and partnerships are in the state system under the Industrial Relations Act. Check your employer's legal identity to tell which applies.

Who is covered by the national Fair Work system?

Employees of constitutional corporations, which is most private sector employers that operate as companies, plus employees in the territories and some others. For these workers the Fair Work Act, modern awards and the National Employment Standards apply, and the Fair Work Commission is the tribunal for unfair dismissal and other claims.

Who is covered by the NSW state industrial system?

State public sector employees, local council employees, employees of unincorporated state employers, and workers covered by state awards. For these workers the Industrial Relations Act 1996 applies and the NSW Industrial Relations Commission is the tribunal. A teacher, council worker or state agency employee is usually in this system.

Why does it matter which system covers you?

The two systems have different laws, tribunals and deadlines. An unfair dismissal claim goes to the Fair Work Commission in the national system and to the NSW IRC in the state system, under different tests and time limits. A claim built for the wrong system can fail, and time spent on the wrong forum can cause you to miss the real deadline.

What is the time limit for a workplace claim?

Unfair dismissal claims in both systems have short time limits, often around three weeks from dismissal. Because the deadline is so tight, identifying your system correctly at the very start matters, so you lodge the right claim in the right tribunal within time. Late applications can be refused.

To speak to a workplace lawyer, call Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019.

This article is written by Aaron Kernaghan, Special Counsel at Good Legal Lawyers, as at 30 August 2026. It is general information and reflects the personal opinion of the author only. It is not legal advice, it is not a substitute for advice on your own matter, and it does not purport to be accurate or complete. The law changes and procedure varies from case to case. For advice on a specific matter, contact Aaron Kernaghan on 0421 717 019 or contact the firm.

More commentary by Aaron Kernaghan.

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